Przewalski's horses came close to extinction
Some animal species are slowly disappearing from planet Earth and, so far, we've done little to stop this from happening.
Przewalski's horses are just one species that is fairly close to being gone.
Przewalski's horses are originally from Central Asia in countries such as China and Mongolia.
There has been a great debate among researchers, scientists and animal enthusiasts on whether Przwalski's horse is its own species, a subspecies of the wild horse, or even a sub-population of the horse. Based on DNA tests, they have placed Przewalski's horse in the middle of the domesticated horse, but no definite answer has yet been given.
In the wild, Przewalski's horses are fairly social, and prefer to live in groups consisting of a dominant stallion, a dominant lead mare, other mares and their young. These horses mark their territory through piles of dung and urine. When a female in the herd urinates, the male will often urinate in the same spot, letting other horses know she's a member of his herd.
This horse got its peculiar name from Russian geographer Nikolai Przhevalsky. He was the first explorer and naturalist to describe the horse in 1881 after an expedition to find the animal he had heard rumours about.
In the early 1900s, a man named Carl Hagenbeck captured many of these horses and placed them in zoos around the world.
In the wild, the population of the Przewalski's horse slowly declined throughout the 20th Century and then finally disappeared entirely in Mongolia in the 1960s. The species was designated "extinct in the wild" for over 30 years.
In captivity, there were only two groups of these horses left by 1945. They resided in zoos in Munich and in Prague. In fact, one of the most valuable groups of Przewalski's horses at the time had been shot and killed by German soldiers during World War II in Askania Nova, Ukraine.
Later, in 1977, the Foundation for Preservation and Protection of the Przewalski Horse was founded by Jan and Inge Bouman in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. This began an exchange program of the horses among various zoos to increase numbers but reduce inbreeding.
In 1992, 16 horses were released into the wild in Mongolia. The status of the Przewalski's horse was changed from "extinct in the wild" to "endangered" in 2005.
This species has had a long, bumpy ride and that ride is not over yet. Even though they have successfully returned to the wild, they still have a long way to go before they are to be considered a stable species.
Zoos around the world continue to use captive breeding programs which allow them to breed their horses in the zoo and then release them into the wild at a later date.
There have also been many efforts to continue breeding. For example, in 2007, the Smithsonian Institution's National Zoo managed to successfully reverse a vasectomy on a Przewalski's horse.
The Przewalski's horses have certainly come a long way, but there's still a lot more that needs to be done for them to become stable again in the wild.
You can visit the Przewalski's horses at the Magnetic Hill Zoo every day from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. behind the lion exhibit.
?Isabelle Agnew's Zoo News appears daily in Life & Times.
Przewalski's horses are just one species that is fairly close to being gone.
Przewalski's horses are originally from Central Asia in countries such as China and Mongolia.
There has been a great debate among researchers, scientists and animal enthusiasts on whether Przwalski's horse is its own species, a subspecies of the wild horse, or even a sub-population of the horse. Based on DNA tests, they have placed Przewalski's horse in the middle of the domesticated horse, but no definite answer has yet been given.
In the wild, Przewalski's horses are fairly social, and prefer to live in groups consisting of a dominant stallion, a dominant lead mare, other mares and their young. These horses mark their territory through piles of dung and urine. When a female in the herd urinates, the male will often urinate in the same spot, letting other horses know she's a member of his herd.
This horse got its peculiar name from Russian geographer Nikolai Przhevalsky. He was the first explorer and naturalist to describe the horse in 1881 after an expedition to find the animal he had heard rumours about.
In the early 1900s, a man named Carl Hagenbeck captured many of these horses and placed them in zoos around the world.
In the wild, the population of the Przewalski's horse slowly declined throughout the 20th Century and then finally disappeared entirely in Mongolia in the 1960s. The species was designated "extinct in the wild" for over 30 years.
In captivity, there were only two groups of these horses left by 1945. They resided in zoos in Munich and in Prague. In fact, one of the most valuable groups of Przewalski's horses at the time had been shot and killed by German soldiers during World War II in Askania Nova, Ukraine.
Later, in 1977, the Foundation for Preservation and Protection of the Przewalski Horse was founded by Jan and Inge Bouman in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. This began an exchange program of the horses among various zoos to increase numbers but reduce inbreeding.
In 1992, 16 horses were released into the wild in Mongolia. The status of the Przewalski's horse was changed from "extinct in the wild" to "endangered" in 2005.
This species has had a long, bumpy ride and that ride is not over yet. Even though they have successfully returned to the wild, they still have a long way to go before they are to be considered a stable species.
Zoos around the world continue to use captive breeding programs which allow them to breed their horses in the zoo and then release them into the wild at a later date.
There have also been many efforts to continue breeding. For example, in 2007, the Smithsonian Institution's National Zoo managed to successfully reverse a vasectomy on a Przewalski's horse.
The Przewalski's horses have certainly come a long way, but there's still a lot more that needs to be done for them to become stable again in the wild.
You can visit the Przewalski's horses at the Magnetic Hill Zoo every day from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. behind the lion exhibit.
?Isabelle Agnew's Zoo News appears daily in Life & Times.
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